Groups renew push to raise tobacco age to 21

BOSTON – While 140 Massachusetts cities and towns have raised their legal tobacco sales from 18 to 21, there’s a renewed push to enact a similar restriction statewide.

Gerry Tuoti Wicked Local Newsbank Editor

BOSTON – While 140 Massachusetts cities and towns have already raised their legal tobacco sales ages from 18 to 21, there’s now a renewed push to enact a similar restriction statewide.

“A change in policy can change lives, and that’s why we’re here today,” Marc Hymovitz, government relations director for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, told a crowd of volunteers, students and health advocates who gathered Wednesday at the Statehouse.

A group of more than 100 rallied in front of the Statehouse’s grand staircase for the ACSCAN annual lobby day. The participants spent the afternoon visiting their elected lawmakers to advocate for new statewide tobacco regulations.

Bills introduced by state Rep. Paul McMurty, D-Dedham, and state Sen. Jason Lewis, D-Winchester, would increase the tobacco sales age to 21, stop pharmacies from selling tobacco products and prohibit the use of e-cigarettes in smoke-free workplaces.

“I think we all understand today that tobacco is still the leading cause of preventable illness and death,” Lewis said. “If we can do more to keep cigarettes, vaping products and other tobacco products out of the hands of 14-year-olds, 15-year-olds, 16-year-olds, we will save lives and reduce healthcare costs.”

Similar legislation passed the Massachusetts Senate last session, but never came up for a vote in the House. Hawaii and California are currently the only states that ban tobacco sales to adults under the age of 21.

According to the ACSCAN, 95 percent of smokers become addicted to nicotine before age 21. Tobacco use leads to 9,000 deaths in Massachusetts each year, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that smoking is responsible for more than $4 billion in annual healthcare costs statewide.

Supporters of the proposal say that allowing 18-year-olds to legally buy cigarettes increases the chances of tobacco getting into the hands of their younger classmates at school.

Ryan Kearney, general counsel for the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, said his group has concerns with the bill, which would prevent legal adults ages 18-20 from buying tobacco. He also questioned the logic of prohibiting stores that contain a pharmacy from selling tobacco products.

Despite his misgivings, however, the Retailers Association of Massachusetts would prefer a consistent statewide law over a “patchwork” of local ordinances, Kearney said when reached by phone Wednesday. The current landscape puts retailers in towns with a tobacco ordinance at a competitive disadvantage compared to stores in neighboring communities, he said.

For Gloucester resident Carol Clark, a volunteer with the ACSCAN, the issue of tobacco is personal. Dangling from her wrist are seven charm bracelets, each one representing a friend or loved one who has battled cancer.

“Cancer’s touched so many people in my life,” said Clark, herself an 18-year survivor of breast cancer. “It’s a very personal mission, having lost so many people in my life.”

Many of the participants were high school students.

“We believe the tobacco age should be raised from 18 to 21 because it will prevent future cases of lung cancer, which is exactly what we need in this community,” said Franklin High School student Teerithveen Pasricha.

Winchester High School student Lali Albrecht offered similar thoughts.

“We think it’s really important because tobacco is the leading cause of preventable deaths in Massachusetts, and if we can help prevent them, obviously we should,” she said.

Acton-Boxborough High School student Rhea Kukkal said it’s important to protect young people from tobacco.

“I’m here today to try to expand the bill to try to prevent tobacco use all the way up to 21-year-olds because it’s the No. 1 biggest cause of preventable death in Massachusetts ...” she said.

Sudbury eighth-grade student Mason Lutz and his mother, Marisa Lutz, also participated. They said taking steps early on to make it harder for kids to start smoking would have positive impacts. An ACSCAN poster featured Mason as the future third baseman for the Boston Red Sox, an allusion to youth’s limitless potential without cigarettes.

Hannah King, a student at Nashoba Regional High School in Bolton, said electronic cigarette use seems to be increasing among young people, many of whom often view smokeless tobacco as a safe alternative to cigarettes.

“E-cigarettes are getting really big, and kids our age don’t take it seriously,” she said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, e-cigarette vapor can contain harmful substances, including nicotine and benzene.

Marshfield resident Deborah Cornwall, a longtime volunteer with the American Cancer Society, said she was heartened to see so many teens take a stand against smoking.

“The fact that these kids are here and advocating for themselves and their peers is one of the most important things that could be happening,” Cornwall said.

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